Singer Capitulates after Years of Lobbying by Grammarians
A watchdog group that lobbies for the correct usage of English announced a coup of sorts over the weekend: singer and songwriter Neil Diamond admitted he was wrong to use the word “brang” in lyrics for a popular 1970s song.
The National Association of Sticklers for the Precise Use of English said that after years of pressing Diamond to renounce his use of “brang” in the lyrics of “Play Me” the recording artist finally did so on Saturday.
The renunciation came when Edwin LeFevre, NASPUA president, encountered Diamond in a bookstore on the Upper West Side of Manhattan.
“There he was, no mistaking him. No security or anything. So I just walked up to him and popped the question,” LeFevre said. “I just point blank said, ‘Weren’t you wrong to use a word like brang in Play Me?’”
LeFevre said Diamond, who is estimated to have sold 120 million records worldwide, stared at him for a moment, smiled wanly and mumbled, “Yeah you might be right.” Then he turned and walked away.
LeFevre said it was one his sweetest moments in more than a decade at the helm of NASPUA.
“Neil’s use of ‘brang’ has grated on me for years,” he said. “Just the other day I was out in Jersey at a Home Depot and there it was, playing up in the ceiling.”
He began singing in a thin tenor, a bit out of tune.
Songs she sang to me
Songs she brang to me
Words that Rang in Me
Rhymes that Sprang from Me
Warmed the night
LeFevre said that NASPUA had contacted Diamond through intermediaries for years trying to get him to renounce use of “brang.”
“Whenever they deigned to respond, they would cite artistic license,” he said. “But you have to weigh that against millions of people who listened to that song and thought it was okay to say ‘brang.’ Not even the worst hillbilly naturally says ‘brang.’”
A Diamond spokesperson reached today for comment was unaware of the encounter between the singer and the grammarian.
“When Neil goes out in public, he often encounters fans and often has warm, engaging exchanges with them,” she said. “Otherwise, we don’t discuss the precise nature of the encounters.”
Buoyed by the unexpected success with Diamond, LeFevre said he planned to ask NASPUA’s board to authorize the group to take steps to get hip-hop performers to use better English.
“That’s a vast uncharted country and it’s time to get it under control,” he said.